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plenary session speakers, titles and topics

John Armstrong, Sources of influence: The relationship between our values and what we take notice of when applying SRV

The application of SRV engages our values, but what are those values based upon? Is it possible that a narrow value position potentially distorts the array of SRV strategies that could be engage but are not because our values leave us blind to other possibilities? These are other features of the relationship between our values and the empirical basis of SRV will be discussed in order to lead to a deeper appreciation of the relationship between what we believe and what we end up doing.

Darcy Elks, SRV: Reflections on taking the road less traveled

This session will invite participants to reflect on their personal journeys of learning, embracing, and implementing the ideas embodied in Social Role Valorization theory. We will also reflect on our collective journeys. Together we will consider themes, metaphors, and questions that have directed our paths, challenged us, and called us to action.

Mary Kealy, Cultivating values based leadership to enable citizens to enjoy the ‘good things of life’

This presentation will describe the changeover process of an agency in the West of Ireland that went from offering conventional group based service models to an emphasis on developing personally suitable valued social roles within the community “one person at a time.” Fundamental to this process was strengthening the vision for what might be possible in each person’s life.

Jo Massarelli, On being helpful: What makes for excellent service

Jo will explore the four elements that make for excellent service: identification with those served, a positive theory of service, strong allies, developing the character to deal with suffering, fear, and apathy.

Mitchel Peters, The importance of the Citizen Advocacy scheme in facilitating valued roles for, and the valuation of, vulnerable people

Citizen Advocacy is a personal advocacy scheme, conceptualised by Wolf Wolfensberger, in which unpaid, one-to-one “matches” are facilitated between vulnerable people and suitable other members of the community. This presentation describes how the vulnerable person—the recipient of the advocacy in the match—can gain valued roles, as well as valuation, through such relationship commitments.

Susan Thomas, The importance and the benefits of being personally connected and engaged with devalued people, and its relevance to Social Role Valorization

This presentation will explain that it is very important for everyone to have ongoing, personal contacts with devalued people and their world, and–as much as possible–for those contacts to be voluntary and of an informal nature. The presentation will review several reasons why such contact is so important, reasons which include benefits of a role-valorization nature to the devalued people who are engaged with, and benefits to the other parties, especially those who enjoy valued status, who do the engaging. A number of ways of facilitating such contacts and engagements for others will also be covered.